Revenue managers for tourism operations (we’re talking hotels, resorts, golf clubs, touring groups and cruise liners) have more on their plates than their marketing counterparts might appreciate.
To enhance revenue per available room (RevPAR), seat and buggy, they’ve got to keep a close eye on OTA commissions (which hellooo, are getting ghastly for many!), occupancy levels, room rates, and more.
On the other hand, marketing teams are under the pump as well. They’re focused on separating the operation from the competition with a point of difference and slick communication.
However, separating these aligned wheels-in-the-cog, along with each role’s related accountabilities, can lead to a mismatch in communication that ultimately hurt’s the operation’s bottom line.
🛳We were talking to a tour ship operator who operates off the Great Barrier Reef the other day. He mentioned how crazy his OTA commissions were getting. They’re now accounting for over 80% of his bookings (yet back in 2013 the OTAs brought in just over 30% bookings).
👍On the one hand, awesome. The OTAs are bringing in business.
👎But on the other hand, his business is becoming monopolised by one main referral base. He has vastly reduced touchpoints with his own customers. How can he actively support returning patrons, nurture relationships, and reduce churn rate, without a conduit for ongoing relationships? Where’s his marketing data? Without data, how can he improve his advertising campaigns?
In the meantime, while the OTAs are undeniably getting a stranglehold on his business with their commission prices continually rising, he feels backed into a corner.
💪So we’re thinking, ‘Mate. You’ve got to take your power back!’
We can’t help ourselves. We ask, “Are you using Storytelling to position yourself differently?”
“Umm. Well, it’s all storytelling isn’t it? So yes, I think so. Am I?”
“Are you using Facebook and Instagram media buying to do some direct advertising yourself?”
He says, “I tried that! It didn’t work.”
“Who’d you get to run your ads for you?”
“Honestly? First it was my 23-year-old niece; she knows social media. But it didn’t go so well, so I hired a freelancer. Again, dud results.”
We hear this ALL the time (we try really hard not to do a face-palm when we do).
Would you hand over the creation of a sophisticated marketing campaign to your favourite niece/nephew (because they are… umm, young?!), or to a random freelancer with no scores on the board, to expand your business?
When you think about it like that, that would be a resounding, “Yeah, nah.”
What if, with the right Skills, Smarts, Sales-funnels and Story-power, this tourism operation was able to:
¬ Keep occupancy rates high
¬ Keep revenue rates high
¬ Reduce commission outlay to OTAs
¬ Broaden their referral base (to reign back in the OTAs monopoly)
¬ Market directly to their ideal market (& retain this data for use in future advert campaigns)
¬ Increase their impact on their guests’ decision-making process (again, taking control back!)
¬ Increase influence over the profile of their business
¬ Increase access to timely and useful marketing data
If they WERE able to do that, I’d say – umm, do it Cockatoo!
Who with? With us of course.
Not to Cockatoo tooo loudly, but we should point out, this is what we do.
We combine Unique Brand Stories and Sales Funnels on the Facebook and Instagram platforms to weave magic for our clients.
We knoooow how painful FB and Insta land can be (we didn’t earn our stripes overnight… this stuff takes time to learn!). So leave that to us! You do what you do. We’ll do what we do.
We get a kick-out-of setting-up our clients to take back control of their business, earn the good stuff (ahem..💲), and come to value how extraordinary FB and Insta advertising can be in contributing to their bottom line!